Emotional support animals are more than just pets. In fact, they aren’t pets; emotional support animals are considered a medical need, as mental health professionals recommend these animals as part of an individual’s treatment plan. Even simply with the companionship they provide, emotional support animals play an important role in easing their owners’ symptoms of a mental disability.

With cats being one of the most loving creatures on the planet, those who find comfort in the presence of their feline friends often ask how to register their cat as an emotional support animal. In this article, we will answer this question and cover additional information about cats as emotional support animals.

What Is an Emotional Support Animal (ESA)?

Also known as an ESA, an emotional support animal is a type of support animal that provides therapeutic benefits to an individual with a psychiatric disability, like depression, anxiety, panic disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

For these animals to provide their therapeutic benefits, they don’t have any training requirements. The owner simply finding peace and soothing with the presence of their emotional support animal and having positive changes in their symptoms is often enough for mental health professionals to write an ESA letter.

With this to keep in mind, only a licensed mental health professional can recommend someone an emotional support animal. Not having an ESA letter won’t get in the way of an animal providing therapeutic benefits to their owner, but it will certainly be a problem when trying to get their legal benefits.

Can Cats Be an ESA?

When it comes to which animals can be an emotional support animal, cats are included in the long list of qualifying animals. An emotional support animal can be any animal that an individual can legally have in their state of residence. Given that there isn’t a single state that prohibits its residents from owning cats, your cat can definitely be your emotional support animal.

In fact, cats are among the most popular emotional support animals due to their effectiveness. According to the US Service Animals emotional support cat guide, a cat can help ease the symptoms of depression, anxiety, panic disorder, OCD, PTSD, autism, and many other mental health problems.

However, as mentioned above, you will need to have an ESA letter for your cat from a licensed mental health professional for your cat to be recognized as an emotional support animal, which brings us to another crucial point.

How to Register Your Cat as an Emotional Support Animal

Registering your cat as an emotional support animal, though it can have its benefits, isn’t a legal requirement. If you have an ESA letter, you will have everything needed for your animal. However, registration can have its benefits, especially when you need to reinforce your rights in housing situations.

For example, by registering your cat as an emotional support animal in an online registry, you will be able to refer people to that website so that they can verify the legitimacy of your animal. Some registries also offer online legal support, so you won’t be alone in case you need it.

How to Register Your Cat as an Emotional Support Animal Without an ESA Letter?

Even though registration, in the sense of being a part of a registry, isn’t a requirement, we often get asked if people can register their cats as an emotional support animal to get their legal benefits, especially without an ESA letter.

Since an ESA letter is a requirement for any animal to be an emotional support animal and get legal protections, you can’t do anything ESA-related without this document. Similarly, registering a cat as an emotional support animal in any of the online databases won’t grant the animal ESA protections.

In order for cat owners to get the added benefits of registration, they must have a valid ESA letter issued by a licensed mental health professional in the first place.

How To Register Your Cat as an Emotional Support Animal: Conclusion

As for getting an ESA letter, you must contact a mental health professional licensed in your state. If you’re already seeing one, it is always a good idea to discuss an emotional support animal as an option for your treatment plan.

Generally, mental health professionals are more than willing to issue an ESA letter if their patients are experiencing the therapeutic benefits of these animals. You shouldn’t have any hesitations about bringing this up in your next session.